April 1, 2014

A rich, moist almond cake with a hint of cardamom and blood orange
zest, with a simple side of blood orange slices... yep I gotta say, this cake is really working for me. I'm a total sucker for almond flour, my
favorite ingredient in GF baking. I deeply appreciate that almond flour creations don't even try
to mimic your standard wheat flour baked goods. Instead, almond flour treats
have their own distinct flavor, texture, and magic deliciousness that
no other flour can achieve - and I like that everything is packed with nutty
protein.

Can I digress for just a moment to talk about our current citrus obsession? We are crazed around here as the winter citrus season winds down. Paul has been juicing up a storm - blood oranges, tangerines, cara caras, grapefruits, pomelos - whatever he can get his hands on. And two weekends ago, Paul and I walked over to our friend Laura's house to raid her extremely happy Meyer tree. I preserved a ton of lemons which will go to good use in the next few months - a tangy preserved lemon salad dressing seems to go with everything spring and summer.

Before whisking egg whites, be sure to clean your whisk and bowl thoroughly so that there's not a hint of oil/grease to inhibit the eggs from whisking properly. I rub my whisk and bowl with a slice of lemon - the acidic juice cuts through any residue. Whisk egg whites until soft peaks form. Add the remaining sugar and continue to whisk egg whites they've formed stiff peaks.

Fold egg whites into the yolk/almond mixture. Don't overmix... we want some streaks of white after mixing.

Prep a 7 inch cake pan. First, thoroughly butter the inside of the pan. Then, cut a round of parchment paper to fit into the bottom of the pan - butter the paper too, just in case. Pour the batter into your prepped pan. Bake cake on the oven's middle rack for 35 minutes.

Let the cake cool on a rack before slicing. (Before removing the cake from the pan, be sure to slide a knife down
around the edges to make sure it easily separates from the side of the
pan.) Keep in mind... any gooey center of the cake will firm up as it cools.

Before serving, dust the cake with powdered sugar. Serve your slices of cake with rounds of blood orange on the side.

I love these sort of nutty cakes too. I made a chocolate hazelnut torte with finely ground hazelnut praline on top for mum's birthday cake today - it was GF as we had a coeliac friend coming & I thought of you! I think you'd have liked it.

That cake looks amazing and I know those flavors are perfect! I'm so jealous of all those lemons. I should see if we can raid our neighbors tree this week .... ;) As always your photography is just beautiful too. I took a styling workshop last weekend and thought of you. One of these days we'll cook together. Have a wonderful week. xoa

PS, those deleted Oregon Trail comments are from me, that was a blog I had years and years ago and I always forget to uncheck it in the drop down menu ;)

Cardamom is my darling of the kitchen, I adore it. And almond flour, and blood oranges, all such wonderful things. But cardamom, yes please, always. Love the wealth of that preserved Meyer lemon image!

Thanks Kathryn. I've made so many variations on almond cake that I wasn't sure this one would bring anything new to my life, but it has added yet another tasty way to enjoy almond flour. It's so good! xoxo

I love almond flour not only for its taste but for the added texture it gives to baked goods. Strangely enough, this year I didn't go citrus-crazy even though I had my share of mandarins. I remember seeing your photos of Meyer lemon preserves on instagram and feeling particularly jealous. I have never tasted Meyer lemons, I'm so curious about their taste.Your cake looks gorgeous by the way :)

Magda, I'm with you.... the texture of almond flour is so good. I love the stuff. I have no idea why Meyer lemons haven't taken hold in Europe. They would grow beautifully there. A mix between standard lemons and mandarins, Meyers have this subtle sweetness that tempers the bitterness... heaven, I think.xoxoE

I love almond-flour baked goods, too! This cake sounds wonderful! Even though citrus season is winding down, the color of blood oranges still always floors me. What's in your preserved lemon brine? I have some on my shelf as well -- so excited for them to be ready! Beautiful citrus.

I totally know what you mean, I'm itching for spring produce to really hit, yet at the same time I can't get enough citrus. I guess that's the beauty of the in-between!My lemon brine is salt and lemon juice. What do you put in yours?xoxoE

Oh lemon juice, how interesting! This is my first try at preserving lemons, I followed an article from Bon Appetit magazine that uses sugar, salt, turmeric (for color I'm assuming) and a couple spices. We'll see how it goes!

I have always wanted to preserve my own lemons! Love that you have neighbors with a very happy lemon tree. This cake is sublime and I need to bake with almond flour - I bet it adds that extra richness to any dessert. Hope you are enjoying the rain we are getting. Have a great week! Lisa

Lisa, almond flour will rock your world... then you'll dabble in all the nut flours... so much fun and deliciousness to be had there.I'm loving the rain. My garden is so happy.Have a good weekend! xoxo

I often make a similar cake without the blood orange, which sounds like a wonderful addition! I'm guessing you would like those cakes with pureed whole oranges as well? Love those! Hope you're doing well, Erin! xoxo

Denise, me too. I make so many almond cakes with some variety on the theme... almond flour, eggs... and each time I fall in love. The blood orange and cardamom gave this one a fun twist.All well here. I hope with you as well:)xoxoE

Almond cake is always a classic - but I love your twist on the flavours. Especially the touch or cardamon. Beautiful photos, as ever. Those orange and yellow ranunculi - stunning. And those pickled lemons - will you be able to post the recipe soon? Please. I would love to make some. x

Stunning cake, Erin. So envious of your citrus haul - we don't get nearly the selection up here. Also, I need to bake with more almond flour - the place where I'm the GF pastry chef is also a nut free restaurant, which admittedly can be tricky at times! Oh, if only I could use nuts there... Your cake is inspiring, nonetheless :) Have a great weekend!

I just made this. It was BEYOND good. I thought it would just be pretty pictures with no good results, but it actually sort of blew my mind. And cardamom. Who knew? Never even had it before. This cake is Sub.Lime.